Don't be a target of COVID-19 due to obesity

Obesity is recognized as a disease that requires treatment on its own, rather than just a physical problem caused by eating too much. Many people are concerned about the vital risk posed by obesity in the current pandemic period, which has already laid the groundwork for many health problems. Obesity Diagnosis and Treatment Center at Memorial Bahçelievler Hospital warned that obese patients are much more vulnerable to COVID-19 and provided important information about the coronavirus-obesity relationship.

Don't let obesity shorten your lifespan.

Obesity is defined as a disease when a person's body mass index (BMI), or height-weight ratio, is greater than 30. A BMI of 35 or higher, along with accompanying diseases such as infertility, Type 2 diabetes, respiratory, joint, and heart problems, necessitates surgical intervention. A BMI over 40 is a disease that requires urgent surgical intervention. Even a BMI over 35 considerably shortens human life. The duration of life is the difference between the actual age determined in the dietitian's examination and the actual metabolic age.

The biggest damage to the respiratory system…

Obesity is caused by a buildup of fat in the neck, abdomen, abdomen, and heart. Therefore, the lungs cannot be adequately ventilated and breathing becomes insufficient. Breathing difficulties when walking or moving around. The lungs cannot be adequately cleaned, nor can the blood be adequately cleaned. In summary, your respiratory system is dysfunctional, and you are unable to obtain oxygen. It causes snoring at night. The compression of the oils in the neck causes snoring. Obesity is also the cause of sleep apnea, a condition that causes suffocation to wake up.

You may have to deal with the endless feeling of tiredness and weakness for life.

Obesity is not just a weight disease. In the accumulated fat storage, adipokines, cytokines, and hormones (estriol) are produced. These cause rheumatic pains in humans. Infection, which causes continuous inflammation, induces a pre-inflammatory state in the body. Fatigue, exhaustion, body edema, and asthma-like respiratory failures prepare the ground. According to studies, the psychology of people with a BMI greater than 40 is just as sensitive as that of organ transplant patients due to all of these processes that reduce the quality of life. While obese people struggle with all of these issues, COVID-19 increases this critical risk significantly. In addition to all these, diabetes is also a result of obesity. Obesity is the cause of the fat that surrounds the heart and enters the cells. As is known, the cytokine storm is a lethal phase of COVID-19. Cytokines are already abundant in the bodies of obese patients.

According to research conducted at the National Institute of Health in the United States, the following groups are at risk of death due to COVID-19:

• Men
• 65 years and above
• Obesity
• Chronic lung diseases
• Heart diseases
• Diabetes
• Those undergoing active chemotherapy
• Organ transplant patients using immunosuppressants

Obese people caught in COVID-19 have a 1.5-3 times higher risk of death than those who are not overweight. If they contract COVID-19 and are admitted to intensive care, they are 1.5 times more likely to be intubated than other people. The prone position, which can be used by anyone who is intubated, cannot be used by these patients. Blood thinners should be given more to these patients. Since the drug dose is determined by body weight. However, as the amount of drugs increases, the risk of bleeding also increases. Therefore, treatment becomes more difficult. People who have survived this difficult process have a longer contagious period than those who are not obese. In other words, obesity is one of humanity's greatest enemies, causing the most difficult process in COVID-19, as it causes many health problems by lowering a person's quality of life. Despite this, continuing to view obesity as destiny and accepting it solely as a physical problem is the greatest threat to one's own mental and physical health.

Why are obese patients suffering from the coronavirus more severely?

• The ventilation of the lungs is restricted in obese patients due to the fat tissues in the abdomen and inside the abdomen.
• The airways narrow, just as they do in asthma patients. As a result of both lung disease and oxygen deficiency, it causes damage to other organs.
• Fats build up in organs like the liver, spleen, lymph nodes, and thymus, weakening the immune system. The intra-abdominal adipose tissue, in particular, promotes cytokine storm by secreting inflammation-inducing cytokines and chemicals.
• Obese people have higher levels of cholesterol, hypertension, vascular damage, and blood coagulation.

Listen to these recommendations to avoid obesity

• Make regular physical activity a part of your life. Walking for 40 minutes every day, or 1 hour three days a week can meet your physical activity requirements.
• Make the Mediterranean diet a part of your life.
• Completely abandon the fast-food diet.
• Consume homemade products instead of ready-made foods with a long shelf life.
• Do your grocery shopping weekly or monthly.
• Choose olive oil instead of animal fats.
• Consume low-fat milk and dairy products.
• Choose healthy cooking techniques.
• Consume no unnatural sugars and keep your daily salt intake to a minimum.
• Consume fish on a regular basis, but cook it by grilling, baking, or steaming rather than deep frying.
• Stay away from ready-made fruit juices, carbonated, acidic and sugary drinks.
• Recognize that obesity is not a problem that can be solved with arbitrary diets and do not be afraid to seek treatment.

The choice of personalized method is important in bariatric surgery.

Individuals suffering from obesity disease and related health issues should seek medical attention immediately. If a person has not been able to lose excess weight despite diet and exercise up to that point, bariatric surgery (obesity surgery) may be an option. With the most appropriate bariatric surgery method, it is possible to permanently lose weight and achieve a healthy life if the BMI is in the appropriate range for surgical operation.

Prepared by the Medical Editorial Board. Our health library contents have been prepared for informational purposes only and with the scientific content on the registration date. For all your questions, concerns, diagnosis or treatment about your health, please consult your doctor or health institution.